That morning, Kai woke up peacefully. He stayed perfectly still for a second, as if the slightest movement might bring back the pain in his ribs. But nothing came back. He took a deep breath and felt nothing at all.
Kai stared at the ceiling, and the silence of the room suddenly overwhelmed him. He placed a hand on his chest, where Nao had treated him. His skin felt normal, too normal.
He blinked, and the memories came flooding back. The Renewal, the dungeon, the Matriarch, the screams, the camp, the guilds, last night's conversation. His promise.
But a heavier thought sank in: Solene. His city. Then Ken, his mother, his father, his old life, all of them somewhere he couldn't even point to.
He sat up slowly, still surprised that his body obeyed him.
The thought didn't comfort him. It almost made him… hollow. Like his brain refused to accept the world had the right to teleport him into the middle of nowhere, force a new life onto him, then leave him to deal with it.
A splash of water from the bathroom next door brought him back to reality. Followed by the sound of a towel being pulled from its rack, then footsteps, a door closing, and more footsteps.
Kai exhaled despite himself, a little relieved. Rin wasn't wasting time. She was already up, already getting ready.
The doorknob turned. Rin entered, still mostly soaked, wrapped in a bathrobe that covered her entirely. She had let down her hair, which now cascaded almost to the floor, sticking in places to her shoulders, arms, and even her legs. She shut the door with her foot and looked at him with strangely soft, catlike eyes.
"Well," she said, walking closer. "You're awake."
Kai stared at her. Not because she was wearing a bathrobe. But mainly because it was Rin, and that look didn't fit with what he knew about her. Rin stopped in front of him and tilted her head.
"So," she said, her eyes soft, almost pleading. "Did your fire get refunded?"
Kai sighed. "Rin..."
She clasped her hands together dramatically.
"I swear I'm not asking this just for myself," she said, then immediately corrected herself, too quickly: "That's a lie. I am asking this for myself, of course. But not only for myself."
Kai rubbed his face. Rin tilted her head even further.
"I'm cold," she insisted, beginning to shiver just as dramatically. "And it's your fault that the dungeon was constantly wet."
Kai raised an eyebrow. "The dungeon was damp before we arrived."
"Anyway," she said more quietly, "everyone is looking for a fire mage now. Mara and Joren saw you. Rumors must already be circulating. So, if you don't want them to look for something else... you'd better keep pretending you're a fire mage."
Kai sighed, resigned to the fact that she was right. "Okay."
At first, Rin couldn't believe her ears, surprised that it had worked. She grabbed her hair with one arm and pulled it back in front of her. She sat down on the bed right next to him without hesitation, as if it were the most natural thing in the world, and turned her back to him, resting her hair on her knees.
Then she added, in a perfectly innocent but sincere tone, "Thank you."
Kai borrowed the Skill again. The warmth returned to his body like a tool settling into a familiar hand. Rin shivered impatiently. Kai turned toward her back, first holding his hands a few inches from her shoulders, without touching her, and gathering heat. First the robe dried, then her skin, then even the air around her seemed to change.
Rin exhaled without restraint. "Oh."
Kai smiled despite himself and continued, gently, adjusting the heat so he wouldn't burn her, or make her uncomfortable. Rin leaned slightly toward him, offering him her back, then straightened up, then leaned forward again, as if searching for the perfect angle.
Just as he seemed to have finished and was beginning to pull warmth back, Rin tilted her head back.
"And my hair."
Kai went silent for a second.
"I can die if I stay like this," Rin added quickly.
"You can't die from wet hair."
"I can," Rin lied. "It's a birth curse."
Kai resumed drying her hair. He had already planned to do so even before she asked him. He placed his hands just above her head at first. The strands fluffed back up, and Rin turned little by little to present it to him as the water ran down to the ends.
Kai sighed, defeated, and raised his hands toward the pink lengths. He didn't truly touch them, but guided the heat in thin layers. A faint mist rose, nearly invisible, and the strands separated, lightened, regained their softness.
Rin closed her eyes for a second. Then she opened them, with a genuine smile. "Thank you, Kai."
He was about to say something stupid to break the moment, but she beat him to it with a wide grin.
"If you ever need your big sister," she said, perfectly pleased with herself, "don't hesitate."
Kai froze. "My big sister?"
"Yes," Rin confirmed, like it made perfect sense.
Kai stared at her, incredulous. Rin pointed at him, as if she were giving a lesson.
"Two-person Renewal," she said. "It's like being reborn. I spawned first. So I'm the big sister. That's the law."
"There is no such law."
"There is now," Rin said.
Kai shook his head, amused, then his expression turned a little more serious.
"This is the last time," he said. "I'm not burning points on hair-drying every morning."
Rin nodded far too fast. "Of course."
Kai watched her. Suspicious. Rin returned the look with absolute innocence.
"And now," she said, standing up abruptly, "get out."
"What?"
"Out," Rin repeated, like it was obvious.
"I need to get dressed," she said. "So, get out."
Kai hesitated. Rin crossed her arms.
"Go," she insisted. "Out."
Kai stood up and stepped right in front of her. Since he was taller, he had to lower his head slightly to meet her gaze. He gave her his best smile.
"All right," he said. "I'm going to wash up. Take your time, little sister."
The innocence in Rin's eyes changed immediately. She immediately grabbed a pillow. But Kai was already heading for the door, almost running. The pillow flew across the room with murderous intent, while Kai hurriedly closed the door behind him.
And he heard, behind it: "GET BACK HERE."
He smiled to himself in the corridor.
⸻
Kai finished tightening the last strap of his boots and sat up on his bed.
Rin was already ready, leaning against the wall, the chain wrapped around her right arm, giving the impression that she had been waiting for an hour when it had only been five minutes.
Kai glanced at her. "Rin?"
Rin raised an eyebrow. "Yes, what?"
"We spent last night going over my Skills, but what about you?"
Kai didn't give her time to respond again.
"I mean, I've watched you enough to–" he said.
Rin's eyes immediately narrowed. "That's a frightening thing to say."
Kai raised his hand. "Not like that."
Rin didn't look convinced. Kai started counting on his fingers anyway, because once he had started, he couldn't stop.
"You've got a Rare chain mastery, an Epic enchantment and of course the common Renewal. You've already confirmed all that to me."
Rin began to be intrigued, wondering if he would guess everything. "Alright…"
"You must have some kind of rare chain-length augment," Kai continued.
Rin looked at him as if he had just stolen a thought from his brain.
"And since the matriarch's heart has not been our problem since yesterday, and given how you produced the token yesterday to pay for the night, I imagine you also have an inventory Skill. I guess it's the common one," he said, holding his chin.
Rin straightened up, pushed off the wall for a moment, torn between admiration and fear.
"You're terrifying."
Kai smiled, proud of himself.
"It's not a compliment," she continued.
"I did a lot of studying before I committed to Thalior," Kai said. "Pamphlets, guild notes… anything I could get my hands on. Anyway, if I'm doing the math right, you've got about three points left to spend, yeah?"
"Wait, what? Why are you talking about points?"
"That's how I calculate the rarities," he said.
She stared at him as if he had just said he measured distances with his feet.
"Whatever," he said. "You must have at least one Skill left, right?"
Rin challenged him, chest held high. "Since you're so smart, go on. Guess."
Kai agreed, looking up as if searching for the answer. "I do have an idea in mind, but no way to be sure yet."
Then he looked her straight in the eyes. "I'll figure it out, lil sis!"
Rin reacted immediately to the nickname. "No, no, it's fine. Shut up!"
She was about to open the door to escape the situation, but then remembered something.
Kai, on the other hand, took her reaction as confirmation of his hypothesis and smiled.
"I might surprise you this time," she said, genuinely proud. "I brought back a little souvenir from my past life."
She slipped her hand under her vest, as if to pull something out. Kai could clearly see that it appeared out of nowhere. A small bag, filled with coins, appeared halfway under her vest. She did not take it out completely. She put a finger in front of her mouth, signaling him not to mention it, as if she had stolen it from the world.
"No way," Kai said.
Rin's smile spread across her face. "The Renewal teleports us without possessions, but apparently inventory slips through."
"Rin," he said, and he meant it, "that's really smart."
Rin's smile widened, proud and a little guilty at the same time.
"I know," she said automatically.
"How much?"
"Enough to restart easily. But don't get carried away," she said, her eyes narrowing slightly. "It's not for my mean lil bro."
"Pff," said Kai. "You were definitely an only child. You're taking revenge on the world for it."
"Oh, so now you're trying to dig into my past. You can't guess it, huh?" said Rin, turning her head and closing her eyes. She put on a smile and then opened one eye in his direction to watch his reaction.
"It's obvious that you were an annoying little brunette who couldn't keep quiet," he replied, turning his head in the same way she did and with the same smirk.
"Ha! Wrong," she said with a big smile, opening the door to leave. "I was blonde."
"So, still small and annoying!" Kai finished as he stood up to follow her.
⸻
After a generous breakfast in the almost empty tavern, Kai and Rin finally headed outside, toward Elronde. The camp was still bustling, with adventurers ready to set out at any moment. A multitude of heads turned toward them the moment the tavern door opened.
Kai was the only one to react, suddenly feeling the pressure on them again. Rin, for her part, ignored the people, looking for the camp exit. Once she found it, she headed towards it and began to walk forward. Kai naturally followed her.
Just before reaching it, they spotted Nao, leaning against a barrel, waiting for someone to find him work. He immediately noticed Rin, who was hard to miss with her hair and chain. He stood up and approached her, looking at Kai with confusion.
He didn't recognize his face, although the outfit looked familiar.
Rin noticed immediately and didn't wait before speaking. "Yes, it's Kai. Don't mind him, he was trying to hit on me with his blond face yesterday."
Kai shook his head, while Nao thought about it.
"But anyway," Rin continued. "It takes more than that to make up for his shitty personality."
Nao looked at Kai. "You used an illusion Skill with all your injuries?"
Kai simply nodded in confirmation.
"You really don't care about your life, do you?"
"By the way, thanks for yesterday, I'm feeling much better," Kai said.
Nao nodded and changed the subject. "And you were planning on leaving on foot? A caravan should be arriving soon. You can wait for it."
Rin replied. "No thanks. We don't really want to owe those guilds any more favors."
"Elronde is a few hours' walk away, right?" Kai asked to verify the information he had obtained at the tavern.
"About four hours without stopping."
"Perfect, that way we'll have time to visit afterwards," Rin said with a smile.
The crowd seemed to be stirring around one of the exits, and Nao's attention rushed there as well.
"Be careful on the road then..." he said as he headed off to his next job.
"See you," Kai said.
"He's invested..." Rin muttered.
"He's paid, above all."
Rin turned back to the road. "Well, it's about time we got going."
Marek was in the crowd too, ready to welcome another adventurer to his guild. And, for a second, he took a look at Kai and Rin leaving the camp.
They started walking, and the camp gradually receded into the distance. The dirt road was clearly visible, littered with small posts spaced far apart but close enough that they could always see one ahead of them. The sky began to cloud over slightly, and the sun disappeared behind the clouds.
Despite this, both Kai and Rin admired the unfamiliar landscapes they were passing through. The plains were vast, but large trees were scattered here and there. The grass was low, but the wildlife was very discreet. Probably because the path was frequently used.
⸻
After about half an hour, a silhouette began to appear in the distance on the path. As they advanced, they realized it was a caravan, probably the one Nao had mentioned. But Kai was still disturbed by the creature pulling it.
It was an enormous mass, as imposing as two horses, covered in scales. Its small legs had long claws, capable of digging into the earth, perhaps even rocks. On its back was a complex harness, used to hold the attachments in place, as well as a driver.
"What is their draft animal?" Kai wondered.
Rin was lost in her thoughts. She looked back at the road ahead before answering.
"Well, a Scalehauler," she replied.
Kai had a flash of recognition. He had heard of this creature, the Scalehauler. Ken told him about it once, when he came back from a long escort.
"Ah, so that's what it looks like."
"You don't even know that?" Rin asked in surprise. "Are you sure you really wanted to become an adventurer?"
"It's okay, I've just never come across one," he began. "There aren't many of them where I lived. We mostly use horses."
"They're more practical than horses," she said. "They can pull a lot of things, and they don't run away from monsters. At worst, they curl up into a ball and no one will bother them."
Kai wasn't really listening. A thought was stuck in his head. "By the way, have you ever heard of Solene?"
"Solene?" Rin thought for a moment. "That doesn't ring a bell."
Kai looked at the ground.
Rin looked at him and spoke seriously. "Is that where you're from?"
"Yes, but I have no idea where that is in relation to us."
He paused, then continued.
"Rin?"
"Mm."
"I told you I got here by accident... My family must have been worried for a few days now. And—" he confessed.
"We'll find a messenger. There's bound to be one in Elronde, don't worry," she interrupted with a smile.
Kai looked up, satisfied. "Thanks, Rin."
Rin's smile quickly disappeared as soon as Kai looked back at the Scalehauler. This time, she was the one who lowered her head. The caravan approached them. The Scalehauler's footsteps made them tremble once they were level with them. Kai turned around so he could keep his eyes on it and the cart it was pulling.
"I have a question too," Rin said, very seriously.
Kai turned his head toward her. But she kept her eyes fixed on the ground in front of her, thinking that looking at him would make the question more difficult.
"Do you really want to become an adventurer? Or do you just want to fix the mistake?"
Kai remained silent for a moment.
She continued very quickly. "You said the Renewal was an accident. You already got your face back. You gained nothing from it. You're looking for where you come from. You're worried about your family. And..." She paused, preparing to say what was most painful for her. "Obviously, I'm not going to hold it against you. But of course, it would bother me a little if you left as soon as we reached Elronde..."
Kai thought seriously before answering, looking down.
"Yes, it was a mistake. I wanted to be like my brother, I wanted to go on adventures with him. I wanted to be able to control my own destiny. I wanted to prepare myself properly… not disappear from one second to the next."
Rin felt her heart sink.
"And I love my family, my brother. I've always wanted to be able to help them. And the last thing I'd ever want is to be separated from them that way and have them worry about me."
Kai looked up to the sky.
"So yes, I have to find a way to get a message to them."
She stopped. So did Kai, looking at her.
"But my goal has always been to become an adventurer. I'd even managed to reach E-rank on my own in Solene. I would have loved to team up with my brother. But as an enchanter, he was already in high demand by the best parties."
Rin finally turned towards him.
"Now, we have a chance to create our own party. My parents can finally stop sacrificing themselves for their children. And who knows, maybe one day our party will be strong enough to recruit my brother."
"And above all," Kai paused, smiled at her, then patted her on the head.
"I have a sister to take care of now."
Rin didn't move.
Kai braced himself for an onslaught.
"Good answer!" Rin said with a genuine smile.
She started walking again, head held high. As she passed him, he took a step to the side, as if to dodge her. She simply walked on by.
"Well, are you coming?" she called out, continuing to walk without looking at him.
He couldn't believe his eyes.
"Um... If you don't mind, I'm going to keep a little distance for now."
She finally turned her head toward him, still with a genuine smile. "Don't worry, I'll let it slide this time. Don't make me change my mind."
Kai laughed, then caught up with her, and they continued on their way. Destination: Elronde.